"Final step, taking you to Gringotts."
Without lingering in the store for long, Tonks continued leading George to Gringotts.
Gringotts was the only wizard bank in the British wizarding community, managed by goblins, and located on the north side of Diagon Alley.
In addition to storing money and safeguarding valuable items for wizards and witches, it also offered a currency exchange service from Muggle money to wizarding money.
George had already formally inherited the old wizard's estate through the Ministry of Magic, so naturally, he needed to visit Gringotts to make all the old wizard's money officially his own.
"So ugly!"
Standing at the entrance to Gringotts, George looked at the goblin guards dressed in crimson uniforms trimmed with gold, and couldn't help but mutter to himself.
The goblins and elves in this world were not the beautiful creatures of myth but rather quite ugly, looking more like goblins from folklore.
Following Tonks up the white steps and through Gringotts' bronze doors, George was greeted by a second silver door with very conspicuous inscriptions on it.
The gist of it was: don't have any bad ideas about Gringotts' wealth, or you'll meet a nasty end.
Beside the silver door stood two goblin attendants who, upon seeing Tonks and George, bowed and led them into a tall marble hall.
Here, about a hundred goblins were bustling about, attending to the wizards' various needs.
Tonks led George to an unoccupied goblin, handing over the paperwork they had just arranged at the Ministry of Magic.
"Change of inheritance for the underground vault."
The goblins at Gringotts were not like the Ministry's staff; they were extremely efficient. After quickly checking all the documents and confirming they were in order, one of them spoke to George:
"This is the key to vault 352. Please keep it safe. Would you like to withdraw any money from the vault now?"
"No, just tell me how much is currently left in the vault."
George took the key and slipped it into his pocket.
There were still 500 Galleons left in the shop from the old wizard's savings, which was enough for him at the moment.
"There are thirteen thousand two hundred Galleons remaining in vault 352."
The goblin flipped through the records before replying.
"Looks like potions trading is quite profitable. I only make a hundred Galleons a month right now, and even after promotion, it'll only go up to one hundred and forty Galleons," Tonks commented enviously.
At her current salary, it would take about ten years to save up that many Galleons, assuming she didn't spend anything. Otherwise, it could take twenty or thirty years to accumulate that much.
Originally, George was frowning, a bit disappointed to hear there were only a little over ten thousand Galleons left, as he had expected at least a hundred thousand. However, when he heard Tonks' comment, his expression instantly calmed.
Thinking about it realistically, it made sense.
The old wizard had run a potion shop and conducted black-market dealings, which certainly made money—likely more than a regular potion shop.
But buying that potion shop must have cost quite a bit, and researching potions, especially high-level ones, was like burning money—it was undoubtedly a massive expenditure.
So having over ten thousand Galleons left now was reasonable.
Compared to Tonks' salary, ten thousand Galleons was indeed a lot, enough to splurge for a good while.
Wizard currency came in three forms: Galleons, Sickles, and Knuts.
One Galleon equaled seventeen Sickles, and one Sickle equaled twenty-nine Knuts.
From Doran's memory, a copy of the Daily Prophet cost only five Knuts, an average meal cost about two or three Sickles, and a wizard's wand was mostly under ten Galleons.
"George, Hogwarts should be sending you a new acceptance letter tomorrow morning. Make sure to study magic well there. You'll definitely make many friends. I have to go now—see you when I can!"
At the entrance of Gringotts, Tonks smiled and ruffled George's hair once more.
George's heart moved at her words, and he then sincerely invited her:
"Tonks, if it weren't for you, I wouldn't have been able to inherit the estate so smoothly. I'd like to treat you to lunch to express my gratitude. You won't refuse me, will you?"
"I..."
Tonks was about to say she needed to return to the Ministry of Magic, but looking at George's sincere and hopeful eyes, and remembering the delicious breakfast she'd had that morning, she hesitated.
"Of course, I won't refuse. Thank you for the offer."
It was already that time of day, and she was getting hungry, so eating wouldn't hurt. The Ministry could wait a bit.
Seeing Tonks agree, George let out a small sigh of relief.
He needed Tonks to appear in his shop as much as possible to deter any ideas the dark wizards in Knockturn Alley might have.
At the same time, he wanted to cultivate a good relationship with her.
If Tonks came to visit frequently, he'd have opportunities to learn some magic from her during this time before heading to Hogwarts.
This was extremely important for him personally.
Escaping from the experimental base wouldn't be easy, and avoiding pursuit afterward would be even harder. The more magic he knew, the more secure his chances would be.
Especially since he knew it wouldn't be long before the time came to escape from that base.
"Thank goodness my cooking is decent!"
George planned to cook up a feast next, hoping to use food to encourage Tonks to visit more often.
As Doran, the old wizard's servant, he had honed his cooking skills over many years, and George himself in his past life had quite an interest in good food.
Though he wasn't as skilled as a professional chef, his cooking was well-regarded by his friends.
Of course, the tastes of East and West differed, but that wasn't an issue. He could cook a few of the most popular local oriental dishes, which would have a lower chance of failure.
"What is this dish? It tastes so unique, I've never had anything like it elsewhere."
"Sweet and Sour Pork."
"What about this one? It's also very good."
"Marinated Chicken."
"And this?"
"Tomato and Egg Stir-fry."
After lunch, Tonks sat back in her chair, patting her now rounded stomach, and exclaimed:
"I didn't expect you to know how to cook Chinese food."
"Tonks, if you like it, you're welcome to come over often. I can make many more delicious dishes."
George smiled as he cleaned the dishes.
Tonks waved her hand at this:
"I couldn't possibly. I'm not thick-skinned enough for that."
To her, George already had it rough; it wouldn't be right to take advantage of her status as an Auror to impose on him. That wasn't her way.
Seeing Tonks' refusal, George guessed her reasoning and sincerely said:
"Tonks, you don't need to feel bad. You coming over often actually helps me a lot."
"After all, this is Knockturn Alley..."
At this point, there was no need to beat around the bush.
Tonks wasn't foolish, and after George's hint, she understood immediately.
"In that case, sure. I'll come over whenever I can to enjoy your cooking."
"But I won't eat for free; I'll provide all the ingredients. No refusing."